NEW ORLEANS, April 22 (UPI) -- It was last call for cigarettes in New Orleans as smoking in bars, restaurants and casinos, has been banned in the city as of Wednesday.
Smoking is also banned in outdoor sports arenas and stadiums, except during specified events, fairgrounds and within five feet of the historic Lafayette Square. Cities that have not fully banned smoking in bars include Las Vegas, Nev., and Philadelphia, Pa.
Bars held smoking-related events to involve patrons before the ciggarrete ban, according to The New York Times. One bar handed out nicotine gum.
"All right guys, put 'em out," bar-owner Frankie Mazzanti said when the ban took effect after midnight. "Sorry, it's over."
The New Orleans city council unanimously passed the ban in January to ensure the safety of restaurant employees.
"I think overall it's going to be a good thing. People will be able to breathe fresh air, and it'll be a good thing overall," Hannah Bourque who works on Bourbon Street, told WDSU. "But, hopefully it doesn't hurt business."
Smoking harms nearly every organ of the body, causes many diseases and reduces the health of smokers in general, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
"Cigarette smoking causes more than 480,000 deaths each year in the United States. This is about one in five deaths," according to the CDC. Smoking is the leading preventable cause of death in the United States.
